5 Things I Do Before Noon

-Take Vitamins. My probiotic needs to be taken on an empty stomach so first thing in the morning is ideal. The other vitamins I take are mostly pregnancy related so this will vary but you can see the full list here. Weirdly, I’ve been a little more relaxed about taking ALL of my vitamins recently and I’ve noticed a shift in my mood that I feel is directly related to the DHA I take. My nutritionist advised me to take fish oil (EPA / DHA) pills for the mental health of my baby, but I feel like I have reaped the benefits as well.

-Eat a substantial breakfast. I cannot even function in the morning without breakfast. I get lightheaded, low energy, and jittery. Paul is the same way so luckily he handles the breakfast-making in our house. I usually have 2 eggs and either half an avocado with hot sauce, cottage cheese with tomato, avocado toast, or half a bagel. On occasion I will make protein pancakes for breakfast but since it’s not the healthiest option I don’t do it often. Eating first thing in the morning really helps me get my day started and last through lunchtime without shriveling up. Sometimes before noon I’ll need a little smoothie or juice to hold me over, but that is usually on days I’m working out.

-Indulge in some social media. Many people say not to do this but I can’t help it. I do it for multiple reasons. 1) When my eyes open in the morning I’m not quite ready to jump out of bed and start my day. I need like 10-15 minutes to get out of my sleepiness so looking through Instagram helps distract me and get my mind stimulated. And 2) I find it to be a creative boost first thing in the morning. I still find social media to be creatively inspiring so it puts me in the mind frame of getting up and creating beautiful content. Plus, once I’ve moved on with my day I’m not sitting down to really look until around lunchtime so it’s kind of my only opportunity (kind of).

-Make a list. I’m big on lists. I always make lists–to do, to buy, to shoot, weekly menu, etc. Having my responsibilities / chores physically written out makes it much easier for me visualize how I will get it done. My mind can become a crazy mess trying to remember everything I need to do so writing it out eases my mind so I can be productive, not neurotic. There’s also something really satisfying about crossing things off your list as they get accomplished.

-Compartmentalize my day. I like to number everything I need to do in a day. It’s kind of a weird habit I’ve developed but it actually helps put my day into perspective. It’s simple: each item on my to-do list is a number. The higher the number, the more I have to do. The smaller the number, the less I have to do. An average day for me is between 4-5. A busy day is 6-7. Anything less than 4 should not even hinder you (unless your ONE thing to do is drive to LAX during rush hour or something lol, but still…). As I go through my day accomplishing my to-do’s I mentally check off another number and it really helps me feel in charge of the day. To be clear, I don’t get through my list before noon, but mapping out my day and getting it started before noon is important. I find that if I start my day after 12 I get less done since it’s busier out, I get hungry, and kind of lazy.

To paint you a picture, if my day consisted of 5 things to do it would go like this:

1. Drop off dry cleaning & pick up packages (they are next door to each other).

2. Work out with Joey

3. Write blog posts for the week

4. Film for YouTube

5. Schedule meeting with electrician to redo bathroom wiring.

As each thing gets done I just mentally let myself know that there is one less thing to do. So 5 becomes 4, 4 becomes 3, 3 becomes 2, and then finally 2 becomes 1. You should try it out. It really makes things seem more doable.

Do you have any habits before noon that you swear by? Share with me below.